b'U N C O R K E DA N I N S I G H T I N T O T H E L I F E O F. . .as the best wine list in the region, having alreadyThrough these connections I had a few trial been awarded the status of having the 5th bestshifts and interviews before deciding to start at list in the whole of Italy. His wine list comprisedGalvin at Windows on 2012. Within 2 years I was of over 2,200 labels, including a Port selectionpromoted to the position of Assistant Sommelier with bottles dating back to the late 19th century.and in 2016 I was appointed to my current Yet, despite having such a highly regardedposition of Head Sommelier.selection, all the wines were sensibly priced.When I first met Paolo, I was slightly nervousHow would you describe your typical because I had no experience of working in acustomer?hotel/restaurant with such a reputation. But IThe customers in London are different to those was open about this and he liked my honestthat Ive worked with in Italylargely because approach and trained me. I loved working therethe pace of life is much more dynamic here. Id and Paolo was a big influence in developingsay that at least 25-30% of our customers are my career in wineindeed we are still goodregulars but we then have a broad mix of other friends today. But after 5 years there I decided tocustomers. Those who are able will enjoy a move on. At this stage in my career I wanted totruly indulgent experience with a something like improve my language skills by learning English,a classic Sauternes to accompany a Foie Gras so I decided to move to Torquay to take up astarter, White and Red with their main course, language course.Port with their cheese and a Brandy with coffee I always believe in pushing the boundaries toto follow. We then get some occasional visitors improve oneself, so Id continued to take part inwho are governed by a budget and they will be competitions including the Best Sommelier inmore select about what they choose.Florence which I won in 2010.As such I entered The Best Sommelier in theHow important are wine by the glass sales World Competition in Santo Domingo in 2010for you?and it was there that I met the top 10 sommeliersThese are very important, and I keep an from the UK, who I quickly connected with. extensive list. We currently have 420 wines on 06 Communiqu - Autumn 2015 Communiqu - Autumn 2015 0732 Communiqu - Autumn/Winter 2019/20'